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Sony is investigating Lenovo fires
We suppose "We Didn't Start the Fire" is quite the popular tune around the Sony HQ these days, but, unfortunately, that statement seems to be proving increasingly false. After a recent rash of violent Lenovo battery explosions, Sony claims they're "investigating" the fires, specifically the LAX incident. Sony apparently thinks there is no official confirmation that the battery in the PC was Sony-made, but we've got a lot of empirical evidence that has us betting otherwise. Lenovo wasn't available for comment, but it doesn't seem far-fetched that we could have the making of a fourth major Sony battery recall in the recent weeks.
Alan Cox's ThinkPad battery explodes
It appears that the exploding IBM ThinkPad that we spotted last week at LAX may not have been a fluke after all. Telsa Gwynne, wife of famed Linux kernel programmer Alan Cox, describes on her website how her husband's ThinkPad battery suddenly exploded last night (see the photo on the next page), after which "a couple of fires started where the (presumably) boiling battery landed," with one of the fragments taking out a nearby LCD monitor. Alan sustained a few minor burns, but other than the laptop itself there were no serious injuries, thankfully. Telsa does note, however, that the battery was third-party and was bought on eBay, so it may not be an authentic IBM pack at all. Still, somebody needs to get to the bottom of this, like, now -- after the Apple, Dell, Panasonic, and Toshiba recalls, the public demands and deserves complete and rapid disclosure.Update: We traded emails with Alan Cox and have posted some of our questions and answers with him on the next page.
ThinkPad explodes at LAX, ignites bomb scare
In a time when you're not even allowed to say the word "bomb" in an airport (hey, it's for good reason), it's got to be like, really freaking embarrassing to have to run up the jetway at full speed, shoving other passengers out of the way as your flaming laptop explodes on the ground. (Sound familiar?) According to an eyewitness report on the Awful Forums, passersby stared aghast or fled crying terrorist, the ThinkPad (which was quoted to be an IBM, not a Lenovo) apparently had a number of death throes as the fire went through various phases, until eventually a United employee busted out the fire extinguisher and laid the laptop to rest. Apparently the machine's owner already checked its battery against the recalls and it was not listed -- and why would it be? IBM and Lenovo aren't flagged for bad batteries -- yet. (Sony, we're looking your direction.) But the coup de grâce at LAX: onlookers apparently mumbling that "too many viruses on your computer" can lead to this horrendous fate. How true, indeed.[Thanks, Peter]
Lenovo unveils Cingular-enabled WWAN ThinkPad T60
All of you Cingular users who are happily toting that Dell already know how splendid built-in UMTS / HSDPA-based technology can be, and you Verizon customers with MacBook Pros now have your very own EV-DO ExpressCard to gloat about, but America's "favorite" GSM provider has paired up with Lenovo to unveil the latest ThinkPad T60. For those who just ain't feeling the protruding Novatel apparatus, this WWAN-integrated machine comes with Cingular's BroadbandConnect hardware pre-installed, as well as a communication manager that "easily establishes connections" to service, and Lenovo's own ThinkVantage software is thrown in to automatically activate / deactivate the host of wireless capabilities based on your in-range options. The specs on this T60 -- aside from the WWAN amenities -- is on par with other non-Cingular editions, and sports a 14.1-inch SXGA+ display, 1.66GHz Intel Core Duo, 512MB of DDR2 RAM, 80GB hard drive, 64MB ATI Mobility Radeon X1300 graphics, 802.11a/b/g, and a DVD burner. The Cingular-enabled T60, which is amazingly not tattooed by a barrage of little orange stickers, is available now to curb your 3G notebook cravings for $1,899.[Via Slashphone]
Lenovo announces ThinkPad Z61p mobile workstation
Lenovo has just announced a new addition to its Z61 series of ThinkPad notebooks -- which currently consists of the Z61t and Z61m -- in the form of a "mobile workstation" called the Z61p. Like the other models in this lineup, the 15.4-inch Z61p offers consumers several Intel Core processor options (maxing out with the 2.0GHz Core Duo T2500), but improves upon the graphics setup by including a Mobility Fire GL V5200 chipset from ATI with 256MB of VRAM. Other features include 1GB of 667MHz DDR2 RAM (expandable to 3GB), up to 100GB of hard drive capacity (in either 5,400RPM or 7,200RPM varieties), a 1,920 x 1,200 pixel display, WiFi, Bluetooth, an ExpressCard slot, and the popular ThinkVantage suite -- though you're not getting the 3G WWAN or titanium case options found on the other Z61 models. While all the pricing details are not immediately clear, it looks like a well-configured system will be going for around $2,400 when these become available next week.[Via laptoping]
Lenovo's floppy-equipped ThinkPad G50 for Japan
China's Lenovo is giving Japan some love with the new mid-range ThinkPad G50. It's a bit on the chunky side, and weighs in at a hefty 7.3 pounds, but we suppose that's to make room for the rather odd inclusion of a built-in floppy drive. The rest of the specs are a bit more standard, like the 15-inch display that ranges in resolution from XGA to SXGA+ (1,400 x 1,050), and the Celeron M or low-end Core Duo processor options. The base model is pretty bare on specs, with a mere 256MB of RAM, CD-ROM drive and 40GB HDD. We're not quite sure how the Core Duo models manage for specs, other than the PC card slot, gigabit Ethernet and four USB 2.0 ports that all the models share, but there's only room for improvement. The laptop is 2-inches thick at its biggest, and 1-inch thick at its thinnest, making room for a 2 hour battery, that manages 2.5 hours of juice for the Core Duo setups. So bust out that Commander Keen floppy, dig up 135,450 Yen ($1169 USD) and snap this thing up before someone else gets suckered into it.[Via Impress]
Cingular 3G option appears on Lenovo's ThinkPad page
We're still not really sure what's taken Lenovo so long to make good on pushing out Cingular 3G options in their beloved ThinkPad line (well, yes we are -- could be anything from hardware to network optimization to Verizon exclusivity -- but is simply most likely the lack of HSDPA rollout), but from the looks of things Lenovo's finally about to launch some laptops with Cingular BroadbandConnect. If it's anything like their Verizon option it'll cost you a bit of cash (about $250 for EV-DO, anyway), but all we know for now is that there's at least one page on Lenovo's site advertising a ThinkPad T60 for a cool $1,900 (not counting the $200 mail-in rebate they're serving up). Hey, these laptops aren't for mere amateurs, so consider yourself warned; you didn't exactly expect the baseline model to come in real cheap, now did you? [Thanks, Dale]
Lenovo ThinkPad Z61m reviewed
Ok suits, listen up. It's time to pilfer the IT budget 'cause the business-class, Lenovo ThinkPad Z61m just pulled a stellar review over at NotebookReview. This Core Duo beast boasts a titanium lid which makes it, dare we say, attractive in that sisterly kind of way, but she's all ThinkPad underneath. The 15.4-inch widescreen model under review featured the 2.0GHz Core Duo T2500, 1GB DDR2 RAM, 5400RPM 100GB SATA disk, and a 128MB ATI x1400 graphics card which allowed the reviewer to blast through the performance tests and should keep Vista's GUI puttering along for at least the terms of your lease. Meanwhile, that 6-cell battery eked out a respectable 3 hours 20 minutes while under a typical workday load -- you know, bidding on eBay auctions, checking stocks, and hunting down ex-lovers all google style. Sure, it's built "like a rock" coming in a bit too heavy and thick for the reviewers liking, but your wage monkeys won't complain will they mister boss-man?
Lenovo's compact V100 reviewed
Yeah, we're officially removing any "ultracompact" or "ultraportable" marketing speak that might have slipped in to describe the V100 from Lenovo, but there's plenty else to love about this slightly bulky compact notebook. First off, at 1.25-inches thick and weighing 4.4 pounds, the laptop is no X60 (which doesn't contain the DVD burner of the V100), but it does look positively skinny beside Dell's new M1210. The V100 features a nice glossy 12.1-inch WXGA screen, and a built-in 1.3 megapixel camera that captured his smarmy mug much better than those featured on the M1210 and MacBook. Lenovo also doesn't seem to have as much trouble keeping the Core Duo cool as Apple is; the V100 ran plenty cool even though it doesn't have the low-voltage version of the chip run by its X60 brother. The plastic case build is a bit drab and not near as sturdy as a ThinkPad, but it should hold up fine. However, the 3 to 4 hour battery life seems barely acceptable. There's an ExpressCard 54 slot, so you might want to hold off until an EV-DO solution comes along. The integrated graphics really limit the gaming options, but the V100 really does provide a lot of functionality for the price, especially if you're not up for lugging an external drive around and want some of that Core Duo power.
Lenovo ThinkPad R60 reviewed
NotebookReview.com got their hands on Lenovo's new ThinkPad R60 -- or should we say, one version of the R60, since you can basically configure it to your heart's content -- and put it through its paces. On the low-end, you can get an R60 with a Celeron processor for as little as $800 but, not suprisingly NotebookReview got something a little more tricked out for testing: one with a Core Duo 2.0GHz processor, 15-inch SXGA screen, EV-DO, ATI X1400 128MB graphics card, 1GB RAM, and a 100GB 7200RPM hard drive. That config will set you back about two grand, but whatever setup you choose, they think you'll be pleased, digging the usual powerhouse ThinkPad keyboard (and touchpoint), rugged design, refreshing lack of pre-loaded junkware and, of course, the endless configuration options. On the downside, it's not quite as sturdy as the T60 and it's a bit thicker and heavier than other notebooks in its class, but for the price and configurability that seems to be a reasonable trade-off for what's still one of the best laptops money can buy.
Lenovo's new ultraportable V100 notebook
We're using the term "ultraportable" a bit generously here, since the new V100 from Lenovo is a whole 1.25-inches thick, and weighs four pounds. Of course, this unit does include a disk drive -- as opposed to the lighter and thinner X60 ThinkPads from Lenovo -- along with a 5-in-1 card reader and optional 1.3 megapixel camera and fingerprint reader. The V100 will also be retailing for considerably less than those X60s, starting out at around $1000. Processors range from 1.66Ghz Intel Core Solo to the 2.0GHz Core Duo, the optical drive comes as a CD-RW/DVD combo unit or as a DVD burner, and hard drives range from 40GB to 100GB. The screen is a 12.1-inch affair, with a 1200 x 800 WXGA resolution. So yeah, you can walk out the door with brand spankin' new Lenovo sporting an Intel Core processor, but it looks like you'll have to select quite a few options to get this guy up to the level of even the $1099 MacBook.[Via MobileMag]
Lenovo beefs up R60 Core Duo laptop
In addition to the Z61series laptops we mentioned earlier this week, Lenovo is also upgrading the specs of its R60 series. Like its big brother, the upgraded R60 gets a Core Duo processor, the option of integrated or separate graphics processors, and built-in Verizon EV-DO support. RAM can be expanded up to 4GB, and displays come in 14 or 15-inches. Pricing starts at about $1,200 with a 14-inch display, 512MB RAM and a 40GB drive.
Lenovo's Z-series ThinkPads to get Core Duo options in the Z61t and Z61m
If you've been bugging your corporate IT department for a new laptop, try to hold off a few more days before making the final push, because Lenovo is set to upgrade its Z-series line of ThinkPad notebooks with dual-core processor options on Tuesday. Both the 14.1-inch Z60t and 15.4-inch Z60m will be bumped to the Z61t and Z61m, respectively, and offer three varieties of Core Duo procs (maxing out at the 2.0GHz T2500) or two flavors each of the Core Solo or Celeron M chips. All the other specs on both models seem to remain unchanged: you still get WXGA widescreen displays (at the minimum), integrated graphics (along with the option of upgrading to ATI Radeon cards in the m), 256MB of RAM to start, your choice of hard drive capacities and speeds, all three 802.11 standards, optional Bluetooth, and of course, the option of built-in EV-DO which have made the Z-series so popular. No word yet on exact pricing for these new models, but you can expect them to start around the same price points as the Z60 models did when they were first released.
Powerbook vs. Thinkpad
David Parmet has written an amusing piece for Apple Matters lamenting his wife's recent ThinkPad purchase. Now, we Mac folks have got it good with Powerbooks and MacBooks, but I must say that I find it unfortunate that David had to pick on a ThinkPad.Are they sexy? Well, not really but they are solid machines, and the best Windows laptops you can buy (for business use, which is what I use mine for). If you have to get a Windows laptop, get a ThinkPad even though it will show finger prints. But let us not forget that it wasn't so long ago that Powerbooks were black.Now, I know we are all dyed in the wool Mac users, but if you had to get a PC laptop, what would you get?
Thinkpad running OS X 10.4.3
Engadget has some video of OS X 10.4.3 running on a Thinkpad (which is the only kind of PC laptop I like) and it is running 'like butter.'Take a look (85.9MB file) at the video and see for yourself.
